Thomas County cat. [volume] (Colby, Kan.) 1885-1891, 1887-10-27

nv right sat a pOrtly dame Win
Roman profile and iron-gray hair. Her
face was singularly familiar. She
raised her shell eye-glass and gazed
with juliet sarcasm upon the corpse OF
a puny little bird which rested from
its Joys and sorrows upon her plate.
Her gesture reminded me of certain
California festivities in which l had
once participated, and recognized the
lady who had told me the tale OF the
'.Circus Blacks"
lis this Mrs Penderlip?" asked at
length.
She turned and looked at me with
ready amiability. after the European
table d'hote manner.
II have met you somewhere. she
said, pleasantly. ''but can not recall
time and place"
1 reminded Mrs. Penderlip of the
half-hOur's chat we had hal eight
years before at the house of the Cal
ifornia mining man, and l asked her
what had become of the "Clrcus
Blacks
..They are here at Rome" said Mrs.
Penderlip. ..and in high feather. They
move in court circles, thanks to
Pussy's beauty and her tlirtations with
poverty-stricken noblemen. l see a
good deal of them. l never even recog-
| nize them in California. l couldn't,
YOU know. But over here it is differ
eAt. Money is all that counts with
Italians. They think all Americans are
plebeians. Mrs. Black IS very glad to
have me vouch for her pedigree.
never say any thing about the bare
back act, or the market garden, or the
tailor's shop. and it wouldn't make
any difference if I did. / like Mrs.
Blacks opera box and her good din
ners-the dinners at this house grow
worse every day and she thinks ME
an excellent chaperon for her Pussy.
Even girls like Pussy Black have to
be choperoned at times in this scandal
loving city. The New York and Bos-
ton women turn up their noses at the
Blacks. but there isn't girl in the
American colony as handsome as
Pussy, and with her money she ought
to marry we'll. The other daughter,
Ella, is married and lives at San Fran
cisco. Nowadays the tops are all got
ting to the bottom and the bottoms to
the top"
Mrs Pendcrlip had evidently mel
lowed with age. She informed me,
pleasantly. that she had met with
financial reverses and was practicing
social amiability as a profession. Mrs.
Penderlip few days later offered to
take me to call upon the Blacks, assur-
ing me that Pussy remembered me
with pleasure. and had expressed her.
se'f as delighted to renew the acquaint-
ance.
They live ut the Hotel d'Angle-
terre," said Mrs. Penderlip, as we
crossed the plaza of the Pantheon.
THAT sort of people never have a
home"
We had just entered the vestibule of
the hotel and were giving our cards to
a fiunky in red plush and gold lace.
when tremendous rafting and rush.
ing was heard, swishing of silk dra-
peries, clanking of spurs and
swords. and, tearing headlong down
the length of the wide crimson-car-
peted staircase with the Towering
camella trees either side. came love-
ly. graceful girl, dragging long,
dark-blue train after her. She was COW
cred with jet ornaments that made a
noise as of falling hailstones. Her
beautiful face was shaded by cava-
lier's hat, with long, dropping. dark
blue plumes. 1t was Pussy Black.
She took her stairs as rapidly as of old.
Behind her skipped one of those SUI
perb specimens ofltalian military man.
hood that decorate the thoroughfares
of Rome. and do SO much to make the
Eternal City SO attractive to American
young women. He was handsome
youth. and with his long, black and
yellow legs, his shining accoutrements
and his neatly corseted figure. he re-
minded one of the brilliant dragon-fiy
lowering over an exquite flower.
Pussy greeted me cordially, and was
extremely sorry that an engagement
for a walk with Count Castelnuovo,
whom she presented to me, would pre-
vent her remaining at home that after
noon; but her mamma-she no longer
said ''ma"--was upstairs, and would
be charmed to see me. Then she
danced off into the sunlight, under
the arched doorway, accompanied BY
her count. and all the gentlemen came
out of the reading-room with their
Galignani and Times in their hands to
see the pretty American girl whisk
herself into the street.
| The Blacks had been presented at
the Quirinal. and went to all the court
balls King Umberto had pronounced
Pussy bellina, as indeed she was. and
| nroou 81 h 4 loJ ~~,.. =,